Broadcast TV Ratings for Thursday, November 1, 2007

CBS and ABC share ownership on this first night of November sweeps, with CBS taking the win among households and viewers, while ABC placed first among adults 18-49.

Also, for the first time this season, ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy out-rated CBS’s CSI among households, viewers and adults 18-49.

CBS finished in first place for the evening with a 10.0/16 household rating/share and 15.89 million viewers, but had to settle for second place among adults 18-49 with a 4.8/12 rating/share.

Last Week:

8.7/14 HH rating [#2]

13.89M viewers [#2]

3.9/12 A18-49rating [#3]

8:00 p.m.: Survivor: China (8.5/14 HH rating/share, 14.32M viewers, 4.8/13 A18-49 rating/share) kicked off the evening for CBS in its usual first place, with a nice increase in viewers and adults 18-49 (+7%). It outpaced its nearest competitor (Ugly Betty) by an impressive 4.42 million viewers (+31%), 20% among households and 29% among adults 18-49.

Week-to-week numbers:

Households – 8.5/13 to 8.5/14

Viewers – 14.19M to 14.32M

Adults 18-49 – 4.5/12 to 4.8/13

9:00 p.m.: Though strong overall, CSI (11.8/17 HH rating/share, 18.75M viewers, 5.6/13 A18-49 rating/share) returned down from its last newly aired episode two weeks ago. Numbers will improve some once finals are released, but as it stands now, the show was off by 2.47 million or 12% among viewers, 9% among households and 14% among adults 18-49. Also, for the first time this season, CSI lost to Grey’s Anatomy in more than just the A18-49 demo (which was the norm). The series had a lower household rating and viewership figure. Update: Just for comparison sakes, here are the final numbers for “CSI”, be sure to look below for the “Grey’s Anatomy” finals: 11.9/18 HH rating/share, 19.06M viewers, 5.7/14 A18-49 rating/share.

Episode-to-episode numbers (October 18, 2007):

Households – 12.9/19 to 11.8/17

Viewers – 21.22M to 18.75M

Adults 18-49 – 6.5/15 to 5.6/13

10:00 p.m.: Without a Trace (9.8/16 HH rating/share, 14.62M viewers, 4.0/11 A18-49 rating/share) rebounded after a season low last week thanks to the return of an original episode of CSI as its lead-in. ‘Trace’ was up 1.89 million or 15% among viewers, 18% among households and 21% among adults 18-49 as it led CBS to a time period win across all three categories.

Week-to-week numbers:

Households – 8.3/14 to 9.8/16

Viewers – 12.73M to 14.62M

Adults 18-49 – 3.3/9 to 4.0/11

ABC followed in second place for the evening with an 8.4/13 household rating/share and 12.56 million viewers, but managed a first place finish among adults 18-49 with a 5.0/13 rating/share.

9:00 p.m.: Grey’s Anatomy (12.3/18 HH rating/share, 18.76M viewers, 7.9/19 A18-49 rating/share) continues its upward trend, and this week managed to out-rate CSI in not just adults 18-49, but among households and viewers as well. Week-to-week, the series showed the most gain among adults 18-49, where it was up by 7% and ahead of its nearest competitor (CSI) but an impressive 29%. Note that the show went 7 minutes into the 10:00 p.m. hour so its ratings will actually improve once the finals are released. Update: And here are the finals: 12.6/19 HH rating/share, 19.31M viewers, 8.1/19 A18-49 rating/share. As you can see, the seven minute overrun makes the week-to-week gains (and the win against CSI) much more impressive. This is now the second highest-rated episode of the year for ‘Grey’s’, behind only the season premiere.

Week-to-week numbers:

Households – 12.2/18 to 12.3/18

Viewers – 18.17M to 18.76M

Adults 18-49 – 7.4/18 to 7.9/19

10:00 p.m.: Big Shots (6.2/10 HH rating/share, 9.01M viewers, 3.7/10 A18-49 rating/share) showed growth in the hour from the week prior, but because of the seven minute Grey’s overrun, these numbers aren’t exactly accurate (with respect to the ratings for Big Shots). I’ll make an update to this section once finals are released, but expect a significant drop in viewership. Update: And here are those numbers: 5.1/9 HH rating/share, 7.32M viewers, 3.1/8 A18-49 rating/share. So the show isn’t necessarily losing viewers who are already watching, but it isn’t doing a good enough job in retaining its “Grey’s Anatomy” lead-in. Final retention was at only 40% among households, 38% among viewers and 38% among adults 18-49. This is its worst retention level of the season thus far.

Week-to-week numbers:

Households – 5.3/9 to 6.2/10

Viewers – 7.38M to 9.01M

Adults 18-49 – 3.0/8 to 3.7/10

Fox finished in third place for the evening with a 5.2/8 household rating/share and 8.50 million viewers, but fell to fourth among adults 18-49 with a 2.5/6 rating/share.

Last Week:

10.1/16 HH rating [#1]

15.64M viewers [#1]

4.8/14 A18-49 rating [#1]

8:00 p.m.: A special two-hour celebrity themed edition of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (5.2/8 HH rating/share, 8.50M viewers, 2.5/6 A18-49 rating/share) returned on par with where it left off on October 11th, posting growth of 430,000 or 5% among viewers and 9% among adults 18-49.

Episode-to-episode numbers (October 11th):

Households – 5.4/9 to 5.2/8

Viewers – 8.07M to 8.50M

Adults 18-49 – 2.3/6 to 2.5/6

Last week’s numbers (MLB World Series Game 2: Pre Game):

Households – 5.4/9

Viewers – 8.03M

Adults 18-49 – 2.3/7

Last week’s numbers (MLB World Series Game 2: Colorado Rockies (Away) at Boston Red Sox (Home)):

Households – 11.1/18

Viewers – 16.95M

Adults 18-49 – 5.3/15

NBC followed in fourth place for the evening with a 5.0/8 household rating/share and 7.96 million viewers, but was able to take third among adults 18-49 with a 3.7/9 rating/share.

Last Week:

5.1/8 HH rating [#4]

8.17M viewers [#4]

3.8/10 A18-49 rating [#4]

8:00 & 8:30 p.m.: NBC didn’t get any improvement in the time period from a double dose of My Name Is Earl (4.7/7 HH rating/share, 7.29M viewers, 3.1/9 A18-49 rating/share) as the series itself declined by 910,000 or 11% among viewers, 6% among households and 14% among adults 18-49. My Name Is Earl is not what it use to be both in its ratings results, and in my opinion, creatively.

10:00 p.m.: E.R. (5.9/10 HH rating/share, 9.06M viewers, 3.9/11 A18-49 rating/share) ended the evening for NBC nearly taking first for the hour in adults 18-49. Despite some decline in overall audience, the series managed a slight increase in its A18-49 audience, posting a 5% increase.

Week-to-week numbers:

Households – 6.1/10 to 5.9/10

Viewers – 9.25M to 9.06M

Adults 18-49 – 3.7/10 to 3.9/11

The CW was left then in fifth place earning a 2.3/4 household rating/share, 3.80 million viewers and a 1.5/4 rating/share among adults 18-49.

Last Week:

2.4/4 HH rating [#5]

3.88M viewers [#5]

1.6/4 A18-49 rating [#5]

8:00 p.m.: Smallville (2.6/4 HH rating/share, 4.31M viewers, 1.7/5 A18-49 rating/share) took a bit of a weekly dip, losing 340,000 or 7% of its total viewer base from the week prior, 10% of its households and 11% of its A18-49 demographic. Even still, these are good numbers for a CW series.

Note: Network average numbers from the week prior are based on fast national data. Comparison’s from the week prior (or episode-to-episode, etc.) on specific shows are based on final national data. Ratings for the current day are based on fast nationals. (Expect all three scenarios to be the case at all times, unless otherwise noted). The final rating for first-run episodes that aired this evening will be reported the following week. So for example, the final rating for tonights episode of “CSI” will be reported in next weeks report for Thursday, November 8, 2007.

Also keep in mind that because these are fast national ratings, numbers may increase or decrease when the final nationals are released.